Dead men are drinking liquor in the dry state of Gujarat! Believe it or not, the state home department has asked prohibition officials to verify how many health liquor permits have been issued in the name of dead persons.
According to senior police sources, the massive exercise of personal verification of health permits, which was suspended by the state government in March 2017, is being conducted again based on a case registered in ¡®A¡¯ division police station of Rajkot wherein a man had got health liquor permit in 2016 in the name of one Sikander Mamri of Rajkot who had died in March 2007.
¡°The ¡°ghost¡± permit was issued allegedly in connivance with the then superintendent of prohibition and excise, R B Bhatt who is yet to arrested, M G Patel (MD) Rajkot, the official of Rajkot Mamlatdar office - who had allegedly issued income certificate to the accused and a doctor of Gondal Hospital, Bhanji Bagda, who had recommended the liquor permit.
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Bagda was granted anticipatory bail while other accused who were arrested are out on bail,¡± said a senior police official.
Police said the accused were booked under sections 466 (forgery of record in public office) 468, 471,114 of IPC for forging documents to conspire and get the health liquor permit issued in the name of a dead man.
¡°The surprising fact is that not only did the person manage to get a health liquor permit in the name of a dead man but he managed to get it renewed for a long period of time,¡± said an investigator. The permit was issued in 2011 and was renewed four times till 2015.
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¡°However, the person who had got the health liquor permit number 12060 issued in his name is yet to be identified. The then superintendent of prohibition and excise, Bhatt, who has retired will be arrested soon,¡± said a top Rajkot police official.
Sources from the prohibition department said that the state home department has directed them to verify health liquor permits of persons aged above 70 years.
¡°We feel from the example of Rajkot, there could be more such fake permits. We are calling up every such liquor permit holder personally to verify the details,¡± said a prohibition official.
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However, prohibition officials added that they have come across health liquor permit holders whose family members are not aware of them holding such permits.
¡°How could it be possible that family members are not aware of the illness based on which the permit holder has got the permit? We would be recommending such permits for further scrutiny,¡± said the prohibition official.
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Upon suspicion that some health liquor permits were being issued on fictitious medical grounds, the government had suspended issuance and renewal of health liquor permits on March 2018.
According to home department officials the new guidelines on issuance and renewal of health liquor permits will be issued soon.